Celebrate too early? NFL players have been dropping the ball for a while now

People are raving about New York Jets receiver Malachi Corley failing to score his first touchdown when he dropped the ball just before crossing the goal line.

How is that possible? Well, that happens more often than you can imagine, as the Jets' rookie just wants to celebrate too soon.

Malachi Corley, WR, New York Jets (2024)

With the Jets at the Houston Texans' 19-yard line early in the second quarter, Corley took a flip from QB Aaron Rodgers and raced down the right sideline. Corley raced into the end zone, but just before he crossed the goal line, he dropped the ball from his right hand in celebration. A video review showed what happened, so Corley was credited with an 18-yard run and a fumble. Worse for the Jets was that the ball rolled out of the end zone to allow a touchback and a turnover.

Let's call it a near miss. Pitts was completing a 49-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter against Tampa Bay when he accelerated and was caught just outside the end zone by safety Antoine Winfield Jr. Winfield knocked out the ball as Pitts dangled it at his sidebut an official ruled that Pitts broke the goal-line plane first.

Sometimes it happens in college football. That was the case with Pitt's current Atlanta teammate McCloud, who just had a 75-yard punt return score against Troy eight years ago when he threw the ball behind him at the 1-yard line. “You’re going to leave this game thinking about my mistake,” McCloud said after the Tigers’ 30-24 win.

Jackson was a freshman who celebrated his apparent touchdown against Dallas by throwing the ball behind him. When he did, he was only at the 1-yard line, wiping out the score.

The father of such celebration errors was Smith, who was on his way to a 50-yard touchdown catch against Kansas City when he stretched his arms over his head at the 5-yard line – with the ball in his left hand Ball slips out and rolls through the end zone. The play was seen across the country on Monday Night Football.

How impressive was the Jets' 21-13 win over the Texans?

Perhaps the most famous chasing and celebrating error in NFL history occurred on January 31, 1993, in Super Bowl XXVII, when speedy Buffalo receiver Don Beebe caught the 290-pound Cowboys lineman celebrating the football with his right hand pointed towards his defensive score. Dallas led 52-17 at the time, so Lett's mistake didn't stop the Cowboys from celebrating a title.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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